Refit 2006-7: volunteers needed
Five weeks to go until the shakedown voyage - and only 26 days until John Laing has to be back in the water! The launch is on March 7th, with the coding inspection (vital to allow us to sail with young people this year) booked for March 15th.

Lots of help still needed, especially from people who don't need accommodation - phone us as soon as possible on 07771 771864 to arrange when you can come.

Skipper Wolf has been away this week, so special thanks to ex-Staff Bosun Craig "Princess" Dickerson, who has been managing the refit in Wolf's absence.

Alongside Craig and Laura, helpers this week have been Matt Bland, Rob Harwood, Phoebe, Ewan Marshall, Jan Stiff from Naomi House (who brought sweets and Pringles - Craig and Laura are arguing about whether I should write "more sweets than we could eat in a week" or "more sweets than we should eat in a week but we're really trying"), Eddie Harper, Dan Godfrey, Tom Hughes, Anthony Fawcett (nicknamed the Pink Painter because of his expertise with pre-kote), Tom Price and John Parkin. Also thanks (and huge apologies) to Mark Boggis, who was missed off last week's list.

It has been a hugely productive week, which means either that Craig is a ruthless slave-driver compared to Wolf, or perhaps that we have reached the stage in the refit where weeks of preparation start turning into finished jobs. Anyway, the hull above the waterline has finally finished being filled, sanded, primed and pre-koted, and as I write, the third coat of top coat is being applied. Below the waterline, everything is finished and ready for antifouling. The scuppers are being painted; the deck bitts are painted and finished; the coach roof has had two coats of pre-kote, and the second coat of top coat is being applied today; the engine room has been completely bashed (a new technical term involving chipping and wire-brushing), and has been fertanned and then given three coats of primer ready for painting next week; Becca's artistic heads door has been varnished; the anchor locker is being put back together; the fore-hatch and mid-hatch are having their final coats of paint; the liferaft holders have had two coats; the mast collars have been done; and the dinghy supports have been painted. At this point I had to stop Craig telling me any more in case it should look as though he is showing off. Wolf, meanwhile, is delighted to see how well things can work when he's not there, and says he now plans to spend next winter in the Caribbean.

For more information on how the refit works, who can come and what volunteers can do, see here.

Financial appeal
Huge thanks this week to the Gerald Micklem Charitable Trust for a grant of £2,000, and to the Coutts Charitable Trust, for £500.

If you haven't already made a contribution to the refit appeal, PLEASE help us if you can. It is a very expensive job to keep John Laing in good condition, as well as keeping voyage prices down at a level which our crew members can afford - especially those from deserving or disadvantaged backgrounds.

To see how refit donations are spent, you can find a pdf of the Appeal leaflet on this website .

Shorebased training
Thanks to all those of you who have booked places on the various courses on February 17th and to those who have sent in their bookings for meals on the day - there are only about six people who haven't yet replied so if you are one of them, please email me now!

If you haven't already booked a place for the evening meal, please be aware that places may be limited - the venue originally said we could book for 25 people, but have kindly accepted bookings for 35 already, and I'm not sure how much further they can be stretched!

Can't wait to go sailing? - crew needed urgently for two days in small yacht
Martin Skipper (an OYT South first mate) needs help to take his own boat, Cwac, from Hamble Yacht Services (where John Laing is in refit) to Weymouth. Weather permitting, he'll be leaving on Monday 19th Feb, after the training weekend, and must be in Weymouth for Tuesday evening. Food on the boat will be provided but if people want to stop at Poole overnight they will have to chip in for the mooring fees. There is room for two crew, at least one of whom must have a fair idea of what they are doing. There are waterproofs, lifejackets and harnesses on board. Cwac is a lovely boat and this trip might be good for anyone who wants to sail something a lot smaller than John Laing! Email Martin or phone 0208 786 7396 (leave a message if no-one in).

Family yacht seeks crew
Possible crewing opportunity on large family yacht with small children returning Sweden to Kiel this summer. Sailing skills essential, would perhaps suit sailor with strong family orientation. Email me for details.

Do you live in West Sussex?
OYT South's West Sussex Support Group is meeting on Tuesday February 13th at 1830 in Chichester Yacht Club. Please email Chris Lane if you might be interested in coming. This is an informal gathering, with a meeting lasting about an hour, and a chance to have a meal afterwards if you would like. In past this group has done excellent work selling berths, raising money and making contacts; and it's a good forum for sharing successes and good ideas Anyone welcome!

Can you help track down this person?
Some time within the last year or two, second mate Trevor Hewson spoke to someone on board John Laing - possibly the father of another member of sea staff? - who was the ex-chief engineer of a company called Shipton Engineering. Trevor is very keen to track this person down again - can anyone help? Email me if you know who this person is!

NEW web section - descriptions for forthcoming voyages
With all the information about this year's voyages, the length of these newsletters has been getting a bit out of control - but a new section on this website has been introduced which should help to tackle the problem!

There is a new link near the top of the left-hand menu on the home page: "Voyages Available NOW". This leads to five pages which cover various types of voyage. Each voyage now has some information about possible itineraries, with pictures and descriptions.

For UK-based voyages, see here.
For Tall Ships races, see here.
For Small Ships races, see here.
For "Baltic and back" voyages, see here.
For Duke of Edinburgh Gold Residential projects, see here.

Spaces now available on these voyages – please book now, or send the links to your friends!

For the full voyage programme, including latest figures on the number of berths available, see here.

We really need some help in filling the empty voyages - please use all your contacts and think whether you know anyone, groups or individuals, who might like to sail. If we get no bookings from young people (aged 12-25) for any particular voyage, we may offer it adult groups; but please note that our published voyage prices are subsidised for young people. Adult voyage prices can be negotiated with the office but are likely to be higher.

Want to sail but can't afford it?
Two ideas for people hoping to raise money in order to sail in John Laing this year:

The Lewis Winstock Trust is inviting applications from individuals seeking sponsorship for charity-run "character building expeditions" - which describes our voyages perfectly. You will find that they ask for a letter from the charity confirming that you would be accepted on the voyage if you get the funding: email me a copy of the rest of your application, including some details about your background and why you want to do the voyage and, if appropriate, I will write the relevant letter from the charity.

Another option might be the Battisborough Charitable Trust. Applications can be made by individuals (not groups) from Devon and Cornwall only, to: Sonia Donovan, 57 Green Park Road, Plymstock, PL9 9HU. You will need to write a letter explaining a bit about yourself, why you want to sail and why you need help with funding. The Trust looks most favourably on people who have succeeded in raising some of the funds themselves, so you should write about what else you are doing towards paying the voyage fee - they will not normally cover 100% of your costs. And you should enclose a stamped, addressed envelope so they can reply to you.

Sea staff bookings
First, second and third mate berths for this year are booking up very fast. Thanks to all those who have given me a choice of dates; over the next few weeks I shall be embarking on the major task of allocating berths so that as many people as possible get something they want. If you haven't already been in touch about when you would like to sail, please email me as soon as possible!

Please note that you should have paid your annual membership (£30) and annual sailing fee (£70) before you can book.

New sea staff and those doing assessments this year MUST have completed an application form and a Criminal Records Bureau background check before you can sail - details here. But please note that filling in your application form and getting your CRB check done just puts you on the list of people eligible for voyages - you MUST contact me about dates if you want to sail this year.

And those over 65 must also now have an ENG1 medical before you can sail - let me know if you need advice or information about arranging this.

Training voyages for sea staff and new prospective sea staff
The mates training weekend, 30 March to 1 April, is full, but I have set up a reserve list in case anyone drops out.

There are two spaces on the adult training voyage 17-22 April (£275) - email me to book. This is the ideal trip for people new to OYT South who want to see how we run our voyages and get used to the boat before committing to training as a watch leader.

Prices include £30 annual membership and £70 mates sailing fee - which means that any other voyages you do in 2007 would be free! Email me to book.

Please note that as these voyages are for adults only, you cannot do your watch leader assessment on them - to be assessed, we have to see how you deal with leading and teaching young people. The adult training voyages are designed to give you a chance to get used to things before you take on the responsibility of trying to teach others.

Website - links needed
With so much work having been done on OYT South's website over recent months, it would be really great if we could increase the numbers of people visiting it. If you have any access to another website - anything from a marine site to a MySpace page, could you include a link to www.oytsouth.org? And let me know so that we can link back to you!

Website - members-only section
If you are a paid-up member of OYT South sea staff, you should have password access to the members-only section of this website, which includes sea staff assessment forms and the Voyage Handbook (baboon file). If you don't have your password, please email me.

Oysterband Big Session Festival
Last year, an OYT South group had a great time at this music festival, and several people are planning to go again this year - it's held in Leicester on June 15-17. Details here.

Photos needed
Please keep sending photos from John Laing voyages or the refit, and I'll use the best on the website. Thanks to David Hemsley for a good set of pictures from his group’s voyage last October - there's a couple at the top of this page.

New readers' sectionIf you are reading the OYT South newsletter for the first time, I hope you will find it useful and interesting, and filled with opportunities for things you will want to get involved in. Please feel free to join in any OYT South activities - nothing here is restricted to long-standing members or people who already know one another. New people are always very welcome!

If you feel that you don't yet know much about OYT South, you will learn more by keeping a regular eye on these newsletters; but for a lot of background information, take a look around this website:

If you are aged 12-25 and hoping to sail as a crew member, take a look here.